Vic Bubas a March Madness insider

Vic Bubas knows as much about March Madness as anybody, but he doesn't share his NCAA bracket picks.

"I never tell anybody because I'm just as bad as everybody else," Bubas said.

The 85-year-old Sun City resident is no stranger to the Final Four.

"The one thing I have on anybody else is that I'm probably the only one who has played in it, coached in it three times and the commissioner of a league with a team in it," he said. He also was on the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee for six years and its chairman in 1985.

Bubas played for N.C. State in the Final Four in 1950; he coached Duke to three Final Four appearances; and he was commissioner of the Sun Belt Conference when the University of North Carolina Charlotte advanced to the Final Four. "I've seen it from as many angles as there are," he said.

Bubas said timing and exposure created the annual March Madness phenomenon.

"It's unique in that it comes comfortably after the Super Bowl and yet Major League Baseball teams haven't kicked off their regular seasons yet. It's ideally suited to sort of take over the sports world during this period," he said. "When you look at the number of television outlets and you add in the Internet, it's kind of incredible in the number of people who cover it in various forms."

The best place to watch the NCAA tournament, he said, is from the couch.

"I enjoy it more by watching it on TV. They do a great job with all the games. They have cameras in places you wouldn't imagine," he said.

"I don't have to park my car, I'm 10 steps from the TV and 20 steps from the bathroom and I don't have to push or shove anybody to get there. Some of my friends in the NCAA say they wish they could do that too."

Duke gains fame

Bubas, a Gary, Ind., native, played at N.C. State from 1947-51, Bubas became the Wolfpack freshmen coach and then a varsity assistant. He interviewed with Frank Howard at Clemson for the head coaching job with the Tigers but eventually landed at rival Duke.

Bubas compiled a gaudy resume as head coach of the Blue Devils from 1960-69 with a 10-year record of 213-69, 128-38 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He was named ACC coach of the year three times; and he coached five All-Americans: Art Heyman, Jeff Mullins, Jack Marin, Bob Verga and Mike Lewis.

Duke won ACC titles in 1960, 1963, 1964 and 1966 - in an era when only the conference champion received an NCAA Tournament bid. "The arenas were sold out then and the ACC decided its champion by tournament play much earlier than other conferences," Bubas said.

As a coach, "the pressure came from fact that if you didn't win, you weren't going anywhere," he said. "It wasn't until late 60s that a team from the ACC as allowed to go to the NIT."

Duke advanced to the Final Four three times and finished second in 1964, losing in the championship game to UCLA under the legendary John Wooden, who would go on to win 10 of the next 12 national titles.

"John Wooden and I used be on the same basketball trail. I saw him a lot at postseason banquets and clinics. I used to tell him, 'You know John, you never did thank me for launching your career. That first national championship you won at my expense.' He just laughed," Bubas said.

"It's tough when you lose in the Final Four, but there are 300 other coaches who would love to have been there," he said.

Postseason expansion

In the more than 40 years since Bubas coached Duke, the NCAA has gradually expanded its tournament field to 68 teams, which he said is not too many.

"It all happens so quickly. People honestly can hardly remember the teams in it until you get to 16 - and that happens in four days," he said.

In the selection process, "it is very, very difficult to differentiate between, for example, the fifth or sixth team in the SEC versus the second team in the Mountain West," he said. "There are so many teams involved, so many factors enter into it. Other than your team, everybody pulls for the underdog and that's good for sports."

Success in the tournament often is a matter of "who gets hot," Bubas said.

As a coach, "the only thing you have to do different in the tournament is make better use of your bench," he said. "You can't take your starting five and just march through. You keep your fingers crossed that you don't get anybody in foul trouble. And injuries are a big factor; you just can't recover from it if a key player goes down."

Bubas said Kentucky looks like the best team in the tournament this year, but nothing is certain. "So many things can happen," he said.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.